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Monday, March 22, 2010

The City and Renaissance Committee of the Midway City Council will meet Tuesday, March 23, at 6 p.m. in the Community Room upstairs at City Hall. The purpose of the meeting is to work on the continued partnership with the City of Midway and Midway Renaissance. The agenda appears to be review of the state auditor's recommendations for public and nonprofit boards.

Friday, March 12, 2010

Charlann Wombles, a member of the Midway City Council, has been appointed to the State Archives and Records Commission by Gov. Steve Beshear, the governor's office announced today. She will be a representative of local governments and serve a term ending Sept. 21, 2013.

Monday, March 8, 2010

The Midway City Council will hear a presentation Monday night from Nashville recreational-vehicle dealer Raymond Brody to set up a temporary RV campground at Midway Station before and during the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games to be held at the Kentucky Horse Park Sept. 25 through Oct. 10.

Brody first made the proposal to the Woodford County Economic Development Authority, which owns the property, and Lexington developer Dennis Anderson, who has a contract to buy the failed industrial park and make it a commercial and residential development. It has a facility for disposal of domestic wastewater into the Midway sewer system. Stephen Burnett wrote in The Woodford Sun (not available online) that Brody offered EDA $30,000 for use of the property and that Mayor Tom Bozarth said the city "will likely charge some usage fees."

Brody told EDA that he would want access to the property in mid-August, to be ready for early arrivals. He indicated that he will run the campground under a contract with the World Equestrian Games and will provide his own 24-hour security and transporation for visitors to downtown Midway. Paraphrasing Brody, the Sun reported that he wanted to set up the campground in Scott County, where the Horse Park is located, but "ran into some obstacles," which he did not explain. He said Midway Station could accommodate 500 to 750 RVs. Click here for a map of the proposed sites.

The city council meets at 5:30 p.m. March 15 at City Hall. The agenda also includes bids for the old sewer plant, delayed from the last meeting, and creation of a Sister Cities program in which Midway would pair with one or more towns in another nation for cultural and other exchanges.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Midway will ask the Kentucky General Assembly to raise the city's classification by one level, a move that would give it more authority and put it on a par with the county seat of Versailles.

The Midway City Council passed a resolution Monday night to seek the change from fifth class to fourth class. Kentucky has six classes of cities; those in the first four classes have authority over alcohol regulations, such as Sunday sales. When Midway restaurants wanted to sell alcoholic beverages on Sundays, the decision was up to the Woodford County Fiscal Court, which delayed action until Versailles decided the question for itself.

City officials cited "increasing population and tourism appeal" as reasons for the change, Stephen Burnett writes in this week's edition of The Woodford Sun(not available online). "City Attorney Phil Moloney, reading the resolution, said the city is also seeking to promote economic development and increase employment," Burnett writes. Moloney cited the hoped-for development of Midway Station and expansion of Midway College. “Midway’s current classification as a city of the fifth class does not provide suitable framework for its continued and future economic growth and development," Moloney said.

The college's residential students are included in Midway's population, which was 1,620 (including 138 students) when the last census was taken almost exactly 10 years ago. The 2010 census figures won't be available for about a year. The population in 2000 was much less than the 3,000 minimum that the state constitution required for a fourth-class city before the General Assembly and the voters relaxed the requirements in 1994. Now, there are no specific population limits and the constitution says the legislature can also consider tax base, geography "or any other reasonable basis" in assigning a classification. However, an earlier statute, still on the books, says a city must submit population data to the legislature before being reclassified.

In a signed statement, Mayor Tom Bozarth and City Clerk Phyllis Hudson said they believe the city's population was undercounted in 2000 because it didn't include "residents living for the majority of the year on campus at Midway College," and that development of Midway Station and adjoining areas, and a nursing home, will give the city "a population in excess of 3,000 residents, and that a strong public purpose exists for reclassification." State Rep. Carl Rollins, D-Midway, said in an interview that he will try to get the classification changed during the current legislative session, which is scheduled to end March 29.

In other business, the council delayed action on bids for sale of the old sewer plant, because Bozarth and council members Diana Queen and Aaron Hamilton were absent.

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News in and around the small but surprisingly interesting town of Midway, Ky., reported, written and photographed mainly by students in community journalism classes in the University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media, taught by Extension Professor Al Cross, director of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues,www.RuralJournalism.org.